Closet garment rack



Oct. 5, 1965 c. F. HINES CLOSET GARMENT RACK Filed Jan. 29, 1965 FIG?) INVENTOR CHARLES F. HINES BY ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,209,710 CLOSET GARMENT RACK Charles F. Hines, Rte. 6, Box 70, Richmond, Va. Filed Jan. 29, 1965, Ser. No. 428,961 Claims. (Cl. 108-30) This invention relates to improvements in garment racks and particularly to a garment rack assembly for quick mounting in a closet.

The current method of installing a garment rack is to fashion a pair of support blocks from wood, secure them to the opposite sides of the closet and thereafter cut a rack bar, or pole, to a length permitting it to be supported on the support blocks. A shelf normally positioned above the rack or pole is then cut to suitable length and similarly supported.

In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, a novel garment rack assembly is comprised of an elongated garment hanger rack bar, combined with a closet shelf and auxiliary storage compartment, formed as a unit. The rack assembly, formed essentially in one piece and being adjustable in width, may be installed in any conventional size closet quickly and easily without extensive carpentry or other time-consuming labor. Such installation in a few minutes by merely securing the assembly in place Will greatly reduce labor time and yet produce an attractive finished closet. In housing or apartment projects, wherein a large number of garment racks are required, such rapid installation may account for large economic savings while on the other hand, a convenience is provided the individual desiring to install the rack assembly in a single existing closet, since the necessity of acquiring lumber, measuring, cutting, etc., is obviated.

Accordingly, it is a primary object of the present invention to provide a closet garment rack assembly which may be quickly and easily installed in a closet, and yet which is attractive and relatively inexpensive. Other objects are to provide such a novel garment rack assembly which is adjustable in width, to provide a rack assembly which is comprised of a rack bar, a shelf and an auxiliary storage compartment, and to provide a garment rack assembly having all of the foregoing objects and further having a built-in reminder member permitting conventional garment hangers to be hung on the rack bar in only one uniform direction, thereby improving the appearance of a large number of garments as they are supported in a closet, and also assuring easy withdrawal of a plurality of garments at the same time, if desired, without garment hanger inter-entanglement.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in this art from the appended claims and following detailed description of the best mode of carrying out the present invention taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a preferred garment rack assembly constructed in accordance with the principles of the present invention;

FIGURE 2 is a side elevation view of the rack assembly shown in FIGURE 1 taken along line 2-2 indicated therein;

FIGURE 3 is a partial side elevation section view of the front portion of the rack assembly, taken along line 33 of FIGURE 1; and

FIGURE 4 is a partial section elevation view taken along line 44 of FIGURE 1.

Referring now to the drawing and particularly to FIG- URE l, the preferred rack assembly of the present invention is indicated generally as mounted in a closet generally indicated by closet walls 14 and 18, and illustrated supporting a conventional garment hanger 22.

As illustrated in FIGURES 1 and 2, the rack assembly 10 is preferably comprised of a pair of sheet steel, aluminum or the like metal, telescopingly engaged garment rack units 26 and 30. Unit 26 will be hereinafter described in detail for the purposes of this description and unless otherwise indicated hereinafter, shall be considered similar in construction to unit 30.

Unit 26 is formed from a single sheet of metal to have a flat shelf portion 34 on the upper side thereof. A wall abutment face 36 extends downwardly from the rear edge of shelf 34, and has punched screw holes therein to provide means for securing the rack assembly to the rear closet wall 14, as illustrated in FIGURE 2. Extending downwardly from abutment face 36 at an angle to shelf 34, is a sheet metal plate 40 whichis curled at its end as shown in detail in FIGURES 2 and 3, to form garment rack bar 44. j

Flange 48 extends downwardly from'the front edge of shelf 34, and is formed substantially U-shaped in cross.- section, as illustrated in FIGURE 3.

Securing means adapted to secure the rack assembly in a closet may be provided in any desired manner. As shown in the preferred embodiment, a bracket 52 having screw holes 56 punched therein, is fixed on the edge of shelf 34, and on the edge of the shelf of unit 30. In the end of rack bar 44, and its corresponding part in unit 30 (bar 58), support tabs 60 are inserted and may be screwed to the closet walls to support the garment rack bar, Various modifications of the securing means may be made without departing from the present invention For example, integral flanges may be formed on the outer ends of the shelf members, the rack bar may be supported from the shelf, or from brackets 52, by means of straps fixed to, and interconnecting the same, and brackets may be secured to the rear surface of the shelves to replace rear abutment face 36. I

To permit width adjustment, units 26 and 30 are telescopingly engaged. Flange 64 extending downwardly from the front of the shelf portion of unit 30, is not U- shaped in cross-section as is flange 48, but is crimped together, as illustrated in FIGURE 3. This facilitates telescopic engagement of flanges 48 and 64. If desired, abutment face 36 may be made slightly longer than its corresponding part in unit 30, but units 26 and 30 are preferably otherwise constructed similarly in size and shape. Rack bar 44, and its corresponding part in unit 30 (bar 58) are of substantially the same diameter, but are made from relatively flexible metal sheet, and with slight force, and slight curling of the end of bar 68, can be made to telescope satisfactorily. A tight fit is desired to lend strength to the center of the rack assembly which, together with several inches of telescoping, overlap as shown in FIGURE 1, eliminates the necessity of providing auxiliary center support means for the rack assembly, even though heavily loaded.

Plate 40 should be located at an angle with shelf 34 so as to form a storage compartment. In its preferred form, such a compartment will accommodate shoes comfortably, with the end of each shoe resting on the upper surface of plate 40 against rack bar 44 to prevent sliding out of the compartment.

Since rack bar 44 is formed by curling the end of plate 40, garment hanger 22 may be hung on bar 44 in only one direction as illustrated. Thus, plate 40 provides a built-in reminder member requiring garments to be hung neatly, especially when the garment hangers are slightly curved to simulate natural shoulder curvature. Moreover, by requiring the hangers to be hung in one direction only, several garments may be removed from the rack assembly at the same time without inter-entanglement.

The invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof. The present embodiment is, therefore, to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, the scope of the invention being indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description of the best mode of carrying out the invention, and all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are, therefore, intended to be embraced therein.

What is claimed and desired to be secured by United States Letters Patent is:

1. A garment rack assembly adapted to be installed in a closet as a unit, said assembly comprising an elongated rack bar, a flat, elongated shelf member substantially parallel with and positioned above said rack bar, means inter-connecting said rack bar and said shelf comprising a sheet-like plate member extending downwardly from said shelf at an acute angle to and connecting with the lower side of said rack bar, and means on said assembly for mounting the same in a closet.

2. A closet garment rack assembly which is adjustable in width and adapted to be readily installed in a closet as a unit, said assembly comprising a pair of telescopingly engaged rack units, each of which is comprised of an elongated rack bar, a fiat elongated shelf member located above and substantially parallel to said rack bar, and a sheet-like plate member formed integrally with and interconnecting said shelf member and said rack bar, said plate member extending downwardly from said shelf member at an acute angle and engaging the lower side of said rack bar whereby to permit conventional garment hangers to engage said rack bar in only one direction, the elongated rack bars, shelf members, and interconnecting sheet-like plate members of said pair of rack units, each being, respectively, telescopingly engaged to permit adjustment of said assembly in the direction of the longitudinal axis of said rack bars, and securing means fixed to each of said rack units for securing the same in a closet.

3. A closet garment rack device for supporting garment hangers, said device comprising an elongated rack bar,

securing means attached to said rack bar and adapted to secure said rack bar substantially horizontally in a closet, and means fixed to one side of said rack bar permitting conventional garment hangers to engage said rack bar in only one direction.

4. A closet garment rack device for supporting garment hangers, said device comprising an elongated rack bar, securing means fixed to said rack bar and adapted to secure it substantially horizontally in a closet, and means fixed to one side of said rack bar permitting conventional garment hangers to engage said rack bar in only one direction, said means last mentioned comprising a sheet member fixed to the bottom of said rack bar and extending rearwardly therefrom in a closet in which said rack bar is mounted.

5. A closet garment rock assembly comprising a pair of longitudinally telescopingly engaged rack units, each of said units being comprised of an elongated garment rack bar, a flat elongated shelf located above said bar and being substantially parallel thereto, and a storage compartment between said bar and said shelf and formed therewith by a sheet-like member extending downwardly from said shelf at an acute angle and connecting with said rack bar on the lower side thereof facing said sheet-like member, said rack bar, shelf member and sheet-like member of each of said pairs of rack units being respectively, telescopingly engaged to permit adjustment of said assembly in the direction of the longitudinal axis of said rack bars, and means fixed to each of said rack units for securing the same in a closet.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,491,678 4/24 Dabney 211- X 2,441,721 5/48 Schroeder 10830 2,870,916 1/59 Bonia et al. 108-30 2,948,405 8/60 Smith 108--30 FOREIGN PATENTS 823,899 11/59 Great Britain.

FRANK B. SHERRY, Primary Examiner. 

1. A GARMENT RACK ASSEMBLY ADAPTED TO BE INSTALLED IN A CLOSET AS A UNIT, SAID ASSEMBLY COMPRISING AN ELONGATED RACK BAR, A FLAT, ELONGATED SHELF MEMBER SUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL WITH AND POSITIONED ABOVE SAID RACK BAR, MEANS INTER-CONNECTING SAID RACK BAR AND SAIOD SHELF COMPRISING A SHEET-LIKE PLATE MEMBER EXTENDING DOWNWARDLY FROM SAID SHELF AT AN ACUTE ANGLE TO AND CONNECTING WITH THE LOWER SIDE OF SAID RACK BAR, AND MEANS ON SAID ASSEMBLY FOR MOUNTING THE SAME IN A CLOSET. 